The present invention relates generally to outboard motors, and more particularly, to an oil distribution system mounted to an engine of an outboard motor.
Two-stroke, or two-cycle engines, have the advantage of not having an oil sump as is required in four-stroke engines and, therefore, do not require frequent oil changes. Further, there are significant weight savings in two-stroke engines, and the modern two-stroke engines, such as that used in the EVINRUDE outboard motor, are highly fuel efficient and have extremely low emission characteristics.
Older two-stroke engines required that the oil be manually mixed with the gas before placed in a fuel tank for the engine. Many newer engines use an internal automated mixing technique that injects oil into the gas. Other newer engines incorporate oil injection systems that directly inject oil into the engine. The oil injection systems have an oil tank or reservoir containing a quantity of oil for use in the injection system. The oil tank, however, is usually located remotely, such as in a boat, which is sometimes inconvenient and requires an oil line and electrical connection extending between the boat and the engine. Further, such systems typically require a lift pump in or near the remote tank in addition to a pressure pump at the engine.
It would therefore be desirable to have an engine oil distribution system capable of being completely enclosed about the motor.